NHS has "taken eye off the ball" on infections

By Peter Griffiths

LONDON (Reuters) - The NHS has lost sight of tackling the majority of hospital-acquired infections as it chases targets to reduce cases of two of the most high profile bugs, an influential parliamentary committee said on Tuesday.

The Public Accounts Committee said health officials have made significant progress in reducing cases of two infections, MRSA and Clostridium difficile, commonly known as "superbugs."

However, the NHS has little idea about the scale of the problem posed by other potentially deadly infections, which make up four-fifths of all hospital-acquired bugs, the committee said in a report.

"It has taken its eye off the ball regarding all other healthcare-associated infections," committee chairman Edward Leigh said in a statement.

"The best available evidence is that other - just as deadly, but also avoidable - infections such as surgical site infections and pneumonias have increased."

More than 300,000 patients in England catch an infection linked to their healthcare while in hospital each year. These infections cost the NHS more than 1 billion pounds a year, the report said.

While praising the NHS for reducing cases of MRSA and C. difficile, the report said health chiefs need to get a "better grip" on the other infections. Health authorities still do not collect data on 80 percent of those other infections.

"The NHS still has no idea how many patients are dying from the other healthcare-associated infections," Leigh added.